Yada was formed in 2015 by a small dedicated group of women. They were united by two things, their faith and their passion to support women to be seen and valued.

All three founders were challenged by the lack of support for women in the sex industry in West Sussex and so began a journey to start mapping out what support was needed. Yada became a registered charity in January 2018. With very humble beginnings (think bike rides to save travel costs and cold church basements) Yada began its mission to support women impacted by sexual exploitation. 

As it grew so was ‘The Esther Project’ born, an outreach service which offered tailored practical and emotional support to self-identifying women in the sex industry. 

At the beginning of 2026 the outreach team made the decision to put down the name ‘The Esther Project’ and switch to ‘Yada Outreach’. The heart of the work stays the same, with the only difference making things a little simpler for the women and services we are working with to understand us as one project. 

Yada started with the heart to support independent escorts, women who sell sex independently online via adult services websites, women who engage in survival sex (who sell/exchange sex for accommodation or other basic needs), women who are working in massage parlours and brothels and victims of sexual exploitation and coercion. All team members who have worked with Yada over the years have shared this same belief, for women to be ‘known’. After all that’s what Yada means, not telling women who they are but allowing space and opportunity for women to discover who they are, their self worth and value. 

Yada has always been about increasing safety, reducing isolation and improving wellbeing. We have always offered regular face to face time with outreach workers, building trust and breaking the cycle of isolation. We have always wanted to provide advocacy and support accessing other services (including benefits, housing, debt counselling, education); safety and sexual health information and advice; tailored practical support, such as support with job applications, CV writing, access to supermarket vouchers and emergency food and toiletry parcels. Like we said we are small but mighty! We support women to make positive life changes, including exit support. Although there are no conditions to exit upon receiving support from our service. 

At the beginning of 2026 Yada took all these different support elements and developed our new pathways. The aim of this has been to continue with a generous heart but also make it really clear for our team, for women and for other services what we do and what we don’t do!

We believe that the story of Yada is just beginning and we can’t wait to see what the future holds. Yada will always remain a place where women can be known.